Debutant Parkar’s ton floors Uttarakhand, puts Mumbai on top

BENGALURU: Debutant Suved Parkar hit a stroke-filled 104 to guide Mumbai to a strong 304 for three on the first day – Monday – of its Ranji Trophy quarter-final against Uttarakhand here.

Armaan Jaffer (60 off 133 balls, 7 fours, 2 sixes) and Sarfaraz Khan (69 batting off 104 balls, 8 fours, 1 six) slammed half-centuries as the 41-time Ranji winner dominated the day. Parkar, who got a life, struck eight fours and two sixes during his 218-ball knock.

On the day, he also joined the likes of his skipper Prithvi Shaw and coach Amol Mazumdar in the list of players to score a hundred on Ranji debut. Along with Jaffer, Parkar rallied the Mumbai innings with a 112-run third-wicket stand after his team was in a spot of bother at 64 for two, having lost openers Shaw (21) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (35) cheaply.

Parkar, who impressed with his footwork, then found an able ally in an in-form Sarfaraz, who was at his aggressive best. The duo compounded Uttarakhand’s woes by adding 128 runs for the unbroken fourth wicket. After the fall of two quick wickets, Parkar and Jaffer played with caution. But, after they got into their groove, they upped the ante.

The pair played shots on all sides and made the opposition bowlers toil hard. Jaffer lofted leg-spinner Dikshanshu Negi to complete his fifty while Parkar nudged pacer Akash Madhwal for a single to reach his maiden half-century.

Mumbai lost only one wicket in the extended second session of play. Once Jaffer departed, Parkar took the onus upon himself to score and alongside Sarfaraz ensured that Mumbai did not lose a single wicket in the third and final session. Parkar reached the three-figure mark with a boundary off Madhwal towards the square-leg region.

At the start of the day, Shaw scored a boundary on the first ball – a cover drive off Deepak Dhapola (3/53) – and then hammered two more fours in the opening over. Shaw, who was in his elements, was however undone by Dhapola’s inswinger in the seventh over.

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